Member Article

Homebuilder’s donation helps community group transform local playground

Homebuilder Mandale Homes has donated £1,200 to the fundraising campaign that is improving the local park and play area at Shelf Hall Park near Bradford. The money has helped to modernise and fund new facilities for the popular wooded park, which was locally acknowledged to be in need of restoration and improvement.

The contribution from Mandale Homes, which is currently building a new development of 13 family homes in Shelf village, brings the fund’s total to £11,000, raised from a combination of local open days, fundraising events, personal contributions from the community, as well as donations from other local businesses.

David Dixon of the Shelf & District Community Group said: “We are really grateful to the team at Mandale and everyone else who has pulled out all the stops to reach such a fantastic total. This has made a real difference to a valuable community asset, helping us to restore it and improve it so that it becomes the vibrant, well cared for place that the people of Shelf deserve.”

The group carried out a community survey in order to find out what new improvements local residents would most like to see in Shelf Hall Park, and “improve the play area” and “attract more wildlife” were among the most popular requests.

Working with Calderdale Council and the NHS, the community group has already installed a fitness and agility trail for adults and teenagers, put up nest boxes and seeded a wildflower meadow which is now in bloom.

The money raised is also funding a series of further improvements over the summer, including the installation of interactive play panels for younger children and thermoplastic markings for games such as hopscotch, transposed onto the park’s tarmac.

Richard Harriman, operations director at Mandale Homes, said: “As a housebuilder Mandale prides itself on making a positive difference to the communities in which we develop new homes. The 13 new three and four-bedroom houses that are taking shape at our Valley Close site in Shelf will be home to families with children and we’re really pleased to be able to do our bit to help ensure that Shelf is a great community, with fantastic facilities for everyone.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Emma Kilmurray .